Their supporters call them heroes. The Japanese government calls them terrorists.

Now the United States’ largest federal court has declared them pirates.

Which they are. You can be against whaling, yet also against Sea Shepherd who a dangerous bunch of liars.

In doing so, the 9th US Circuit Court of Appeals castigated Paul Watson and members of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society he founded for the tactics used in their relentless campaign to disrupt the annual whale hunt off the dangerous waters of Antarctica.

“You don’t need a peg leg or an eye patch,” Chief Judge Alex Kozinski wrote for the unanimous three-judge panel.

Kozinski is a brilliant judge.

“When you ram ships; hurl glass containers of acid; drag metal-reinforced ropes in the water to damage propellers and rudders; launch smoke bombs and flares with hooks; and point high-powered lasers at other ships, you are, without a doubt, a pirate, no matter how high-minded you believe your purpose to be.”

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This entry was posted on Thursday, February 28th, 2013 at 3:00 pm and is filed under International Politics.
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Brian Harmer (650) Says:
February 28th, 2013 at 3:06 pm
The USA think they are the international policeman – and they think that applies to trade deals also…..

And I hope and pray that the Japs sink a couple of their boats (not their own – the idiots playing lose and fast on the high seas).
These are the same people that think man is causing global warming and they are using the same tactics to ensure that we are ‘saved’…..

Why, did he declare that Japan is continuing to kill whales illegally and faces severe punishment if it continues?

Japan is killing whales lawfully under the relevant international treaties. You (and Sea Shepherd and others) can reasonably think that Japan should not be killing any whales at all but international law has never been about being nice to whales (or Tibetans for that matter) but requiring that States live up to the agreements they sign.

A case in point: the shooting of hostages was not a war crime during the first and second world wars (it is now). The only nation to actually shoot hostages to enforce good behaviour in occupied territories was Germany but its practice was lawful insofar as no treaty had been made to abrogate the practice. Where the Allies punished Germans for the shooting of hostages, they did so on the grounds that the number of hostages shot was excessive to the original disturbance.

So in order for the killing of whales to be declared illegal, there would have to be a treaty banning the practice (and preventing research whaling). The only problem is Japan won’t sign it, Norway won’t sign it and Iceland won’t sign it. Without their signatures, any treaty will not be binding on them.

One could go to war and require the whaling nations sign the treaty as a consequence of any peace but that’s a rather poor precedent to set…

Except the Japs are hunting in the Southern Whale sanctuary.
As in no whale hunting allowed.

Australia looks pathetic in doing nothing about it. The Japs are giving the big fuck you to Aus.
What’s next, fishing in Australian territorial waters?
They probably already are fishing in NZ waters, who would know and what the fuck could we do about it, probably diddly squat.

Whilst being uncertain about the legality of the Japanese whale catching activities, it is surely self evident that the activities of those brave and fearless fellows on Sea Shepherd are almost certainly illegal.

(No doubt someone au fait with international maritime law as it applies in the deep Southern Ocean can explain.)

And good on Uncle Sam by the way. Its clear no-one else has the ability to do much about this sure-to-end-in-tears-or-worse nonsense.

And anyway, what is that saying? ‘Two wrongs don’t make a right” In my book Sea Shepherd is the villain of this piece.

While some are moaning about the Japs taking few whales, we have some problems closer to home.

Great Whites are a protected species under NZ law and I am distressed to have just heard a news report that the police are believed to have shot to death one of these magnificent creatures.

It is an offence and I will be looking to see the prosecution of those concerned. Just as the police would prosecute a member of the public in the same circumstances, along with some firearms offences no doubt.

Great White Sharks now more endangered than tigers with just 3,500 left in the oceans

They are known as one of the deadliest creatures on Earth.
But according to a shocking new study, great white sharks are also one of the most endangered.
Wildlife experts say there are now fewer than 3,500 great whites left in the oceans, making them rarer than tigers.

“Threats to Great White Sharks
Due to severe overfishing, great white sharks are listed as “Vulnerable” on the IUCN’s Red List. Even though they are protected internationally under the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES), great white sharks continue to be targeted for their teeth and jaws, which are sold on the black market”

“International
The white shark is protected internationally through a number of mechanisms. The white shark is listed on Appendix II of the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Fauna and Flora (CITES) and also on Appendices I and II of the Convention on Migratory Species (CMS). “

(Gun-equipped) JNSDF icebreaker in the vicinity of whaling vessels under attack, sinks one or two pirate vessels.

Pirates yell and scream to the international media that ‘they wus wronged’ and it’s all Japan’s fault

Japan subject to ‘severe censure’ by the UN

Pirates (now completely vindicated) return to the fray, emboldened by the UN decision in their favour.

JNSDF methodically sink pirate vesssels.

Problem solved..

While it is unfortunately unlikely that this will happen, I suspect that Mr. Watson may have misread the situation to his cost. The Japanese are extremely big on ‘face’ and if they perceive that, by allowing the SS pirates to ’embarass’ them they will be seen to have lost ‘face’, they will take very quick and very effective action.

An interesting situation indeed – and guess whom the MSM will be supporting? (hint, it’s not the Japanese)

No, no, no – Pirates aren’t hung; because the UN has deemed that they are only simple souls unused to evil western ways they’re merely sent back to shore to ponder the effects of their actions, rehabilitate themselves and then promptly get back in their boats to re-offend.

(These are of course the ‘poor somali’ pirates – watson et al are on a different plane altogether)

Those Japanese whalers are miserable bastards. They’re fanatical, and will not stop just because we ask them to. I salute the bravery of Sea Shepherd. Remember when we were a nation with ballz? Once we sent our battleships to protest the Frenchies doing their nuclear testing in our backyard. We should do the same for the Japanese whalers, assuming we still have battleships. If the Japanese were nice, and had any sense of awareness and history, then they would stop on their own accord, just out of respect for us. They’d say to themselves, hey, those Kiwis don’t want us to hunt, torture, and kill whales in their backyard, and remember we did go berserk during the war, so maybe it would be nice to show some respect for their wishes. But alas, that is very unlikely to happen. For one thing most Japanese have no idea how nutso they went during the war, as any information along those lines is excised from all school text books in Japan. Sea Shepherd should give the finger to corrupt USA judges. If it is okay for the USA to kill innocents in pakistan and afghanistan with their drones, then go for it Sea Shepherd I say. True heroes they are, unlike the limp-dicked keyboard warriors we have in here. You know who you are!

Dean Papa. Please tell us more about how those evil Japs “torture” the whales ? Is it as bad as what the Orca do when they hunt down those Minkie whales, chasing them for miles and nipping bits off of them?

I liked the war stories. Nice touch. How about bringing in the Nazis too ?

“Orcas are being sighted in increasing numbers off the coast of Newfoundland this month, and experienced whale watchers have been shocked on three occasions to see the carnivorous predators killing the local minke whales.

Bob Bartlett, of Trinity Eco-Tours in Trinity Bay, has been observing the local waters for more than two decades as a recreational and commercial diver and tour operator. On Tuesday, he and a boatful of whale watchers filmed a pod of six orcas surrounding and devouring a minke, a much more common species.

“It’s rare for them to be here, its rare to catch an attack on film or even see one…everything is just so rare, it’s unbelievable,” Mr. Bartlett said. In 25 years, he’s never seen orcas before.

“They had corralled a minke whale between two or three of these killer whales and there was a vicious deliberate attack … . You could see blood in the water,” he said. “They took the whole of the minke whale by the head and took it underwater.”

This extreme form of eco-activism has morphed into eco terrorism, a form of protest that goes beyond ideals, that engages in reckless and dangerous behaviour that inevitably results in death.
The Sea Shepherd crew and their leader Paul Watson must now face the consequences of their actions, if they want to engage in this form of no holds barred intervention, then they can expect a like wise response. If these guys want to play hard and fast, so can the whaling ships.

Pressuring them in this way is not stopping them whaling. Shoving our Western sensibilities down their throats will not be effective with such a proud and head strong people. A different approach is required.

Davo36, no one cares what NZers want. Why do you think a proud and ancient people like the Japanese are remotely interested in the sensibilities of a recently formed fragmented upstart country like NZ ?

We have common ground on opposing whaling, but the approach to take is where I differ from those supporting the arrogant eco terrorists.

And sorry to burst your bubble, but those greeny boats are crewed by people wanting to have fun, fuck, adventure and pretend they are fighting for some higher cause, to promote themselves, while avoiding having to make an honest living.

This from the Sea Shepherd web-store. They think rather a lot of them selves. What a pack of wankers !

Confessions of an Eco-Terrorist is a groundbreaking documentary feature film that takes viewers on an action packed voyage with the world’s most wanted environmental heroes: Captain Paul Watson and the crew of the Sea Shepherd Conservation Society. Seen through the eyes of director, activist, and longest serving crewmember Peter Brown, the film features insider footage and insights into 30+ years of the most exciting, despairing, and triumphant environmental campaigns of the century…

Confessions grants the viewer an intimate look at shipboard life amongst these animal saviors and sea rebels, the ones who helped shape the Green Movement we know and love today…

The hard-nosed cast of characters in the film exude bravery and wit, all while engaging in action-packed conflict including boarding ships, arrests, ramming of illegal fishing vessels as well as sinking of pirate whaling ships and illegal fishing vessels.

I love how the international language of legalese gives such broad-brush treatment to the meanings of words such as “pirate”.

Real pirates rob you, and then nail a loop of your small intestine to the mast and force you at the point of a cutlass to dance across the deck, drawing your guts out like a rope, while your staff / friends / family watch.

Sea Shephard fanatics are not in the same league and it is lazy, dishonest bullshit to pretend that they are.

But whaling is hideous, good on those nutters for giving the whalers an occasional serve.